


Love Today

by groovyhedgehog (GroovyHedgehog)



Category: Merlin (TV), Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Old Republic
Genre: Chaptered, Crossover, F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2011-11-23
Updated: 2011-11-23
Packaged: 2017-10-26 11:38:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/282596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GroovyHedgehog/pseuds/groovyhedgehog
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As a Jedi, apprenticed to Master Gaius, Merlin is swept off to the planet of Albion to the kingdom of Camelot to help settle a domestic dispute and ward off a rebellion. Uther Pendragon, current king of Camelot, has gone missing and his son Arthur is left in charge. Desperate for help, he has called upon the help of the Jedi. Old Republic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Take it from Here

**Author's Note:**

> Well, my first official Merlin fan fiction! I know I'm a sucky writer, so if you happen to trudge through the jungle of my crappiness, you will forever be my hero. If you happen to enjoy it along the way, you deserve a Nobel. Not even lying.
> 
> This is a fic prompted by giantbabyrats of tumblr. It's a challenging prompt and I'm trying to do it justice and I feel like I'm failing miserably, but... I'm still going to try! What I originally planned sort of exploded into a multi-part WIP fic, so I'll be continuing as frequently as I possibly can. Also, I SWEAR it'll tie in with the prompts! I swear! Just be patient!
> 
> Original prompt: "When i grow up i dream of being a jedi" and go with the song "Love today" by Mika. :P - giantbabyrats.tumblr.com

The chairs outside the Jedi Council Room burned into Merlin’s touch. He hunched over himself, letting go of the chair’s metal arms and pulled his robes tight around his lanky body. His eyes drifted past the windows in means of distraction as the busy Coruscant traffic flowed to and from in the vibrant light of the setting sun. Any second now, Master Gaius would emerge from his meeting with the Jedi Council and any second now, Merlin would know if he was to undergo the trials to become a Jedi Knight. As usual, Merlin’s impatience drove his feet into a frenzy of constant motion, tapping against the durasteel floor, and he caught himself chewing sores into his lips.

 _Need to stop that. Gaius will fuss._

A loud _swish_ announced the opening of the Council Room doors and Merlin jerked upright, large eyes snapping to attention. Master Gaius’ face remained unreadable, his lips pursed tightly, one eye open critically while the other–damaged from battle many years ago–twitched and folded over on itself. He watched Merlin and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Well?” Merlin stood up immediately, his robes falling around his ankles. “What’d they say?” His heart raced like if it beat fast enough, somehow he could bypass the next few seconds of silence. “Gaius, come on. You can’t leave me hanging like this!”

Gaius sighed. _“Master_ Gaius.”

“Yes, yes. Just tell me, please!” Merlin pleaded. He didn’t appreciate Gaius’ hesitation, and it only succeeded in drawing out a gnawing in his stomach that could only be brought on by doubts and fears.

“Merlin, you really must learn to temper your emotions,” Gaius instructed, his critical eyes still resting on Merlin’s restless form.

“Is that what they said?”

“No. Well, yes, in a way. But that bit of advice is coming from me.”

“So I’m not going to take the trials?” Merlin’s heart sank. After all this time, all this work, all his hopes and dreams, he was to become a farmer or miner on some god-forsaken planet, where the temple shipped padawan learners if a master never chose them and where apprentices who never made it to Knight status were sent to be watched under careful supervision. The anticipation of Gaius’ response was squeezing the feeling out of Merlin’s fingers and toes (or was that the near freezing temperature that the upper levels of the temple always seemed to be set at?) and his breath strained for freedom from the tightening binds in his chest. “After all this time?” Grief washed over him like a storm and he sank helplessly into his chair.

“Merlin, you _really_ must learn to temper your emotions,” Gaius reiterated with a sigh.

“I’ll work on that! I swear I will. I can—” Merlin stopped when a smile crept across Gaius’ lips and he stared at his master in disbelief. “You—” He rose to his feet again, half glaring, half grinning, his emotions in turmoil as disappointment gave way to a downpour of relief. “You are the cruelest, wickedest master I have _ever_ met.” Gaius chuckled and Merlin wrapped his arms around his master in a tight embrace, fighting the sheer and utter bliss that followed in the wake of his relief. “This is incredible!”

Gaius patted his apprentice’s shoulder and choked out, “Merlin, you’re suffocating me!”

“Sorry! Sorry, I just…” Merlin let go of Gaius, grinning boyishly still. “I can’t believe it! I can’t believe—I’m really going to take the trials?”

“You really are,” Gaius nodded, reclaiming his breath, smiling widely because Merlin’s joy was so contagious. “There is only one stipulation.”

Merlin’s grin faltered. “What?”

“They’ve asked us to go on one last mission together.”

“Oh! Is that all, then? What are we in for? Solving mysteries? Battling creatures? Perhaps a little bit of the old hostage rescuing?” Merlin nudged Gaius’ shoulder with a gleam in his eyes. Gaius merely shook his head.

“The Jedi have been called to help settle a domestic dispute.”

“Oh, wonderful,” Merlin rolled his eyes. “Those are always a blast.”

Gaius smiled. _“Try_ to have a bit of enthusiasm, Merlin. This will be your final mission as my apprentice.”

“If I pass the trials.”

“I have no doubt in my mind that you will pass.”

Merlin flushed and averted his eyes, his lips crooked into an awkward smile. If Gaius believed he could pass the trials, then failure really wasn’t an option. Gaius was like the father he never knew and he resolved to make his master proud.

“So where are we going, anyways?” Merlin quickly changed the subject as he tried to calm the raging blush that extended to his ears.

“We’re off to Albion. To the capital city of Camelot.”

Merlin groaned. "No."

"Yes. Best start packing."

"I don't suppose we'll be helping the Pendragons out again?"

"That is precisely what we are doing."


	2. Take My Word for It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur Pendragon stresses over Camelot, rebellion, and the disappearance of his father.

Arthur stalked back and forth, back and forth, his thick boots clicking against the cold, stone floors of Castle Camelot, between the thrones and the carved double doors. The knight captain, Sir Leon, watched Arthur’s pacing with careful precision, calm and tactful as his body stood rigid. He wanted to calm his prince, but the anger mixed with worry, which defined the way Arthur’s jaw set tight, kept Leon from speaking. Arthur was thinking and it was best not to interrupt the process.

“Sir Leon, how are the knights doing?”

Leon glanced up and their gazes met as Arthur halted, just for a moment, and the knight captain tensed. Truthfully, there wasn’t much to report, other than the ongoing search for King Uther Pendragon, and that was bleak at the very best. Signs of Uther Pendragon were all but impossible to find and Arthur’s slow descent into worry-driven madness was doing nothing for his stubborn denial. Two months passed since they discovered King Uther missing and still they found no traces of his presence or evidence as to what tragedy had even taken place, yet Arthur insisted on searching and refused to take the crown just yet. Just a little bit longer, he kept telling them. Just a bit longer. I don’t want to give up hope yet.

“The knights, my lord, are stretched thin,” Leon replied calmly. “The search for our king has led us to nothing but dead ends. Truthfully, Sir Gwain is having trouble keeping his division’s morale up and Sir Lancelot could use his help. Our people are growing restless and the druidic rebellion is growing.”

Arthur’s eyes drifted to the nearest window, out to the crowded streets where the people of Camelot bustled about their daily lives. A sigh fell heavily on him and his shoulders fell with his gaze. Sir Leon was right, but something inside him told him not to give up yet. His father was missing. His father. He couldn’t give up, and taking the crown would be like spitting in his father's face. Still, his people needed a strong leader, and they wouldn’t follow a prince for much longer. They needed a king.

“I spoke with the Jedi this morning,” he said quietly. Sir Leon frowned. “I know what you’re thinking, Leon, but I think think their presence here will help a great deal. There’s something strange about all of this and I need an extra set of eyes and ears.”

Leon nodded slowly. “I think that was a wise decision. But, your father--if he finds out...”

“Well, I am hoping to avoid that part. Perhaps what he doesn’t know will be best for us all.” Arthur straightened up, smoothing out his jacket collar. “And I am not my father. The Jedi have been a force of good in the universe for so long and my father is too stubborn to let that good in. There is something very dark lurking in the shadows, and it’s making me nervous.”

Leon nodded again, then shifted his weight, casting a glance out the window where Arthur’s eyes had just been. "Do you know who they're sending?"

Arthur folded his arms across his chest, eyes scrutinizing Leon's movements. "Does it matter?"

"I think I'm hoping to see Merlin and Gaius," Leon replied, turning back to meet Arthur's look with a smile. "I think it would be a welcome change. They always seem to--"

"If you're suggesting that Pendragon's can't do anything without Merlin's help," Arthur interrupted, glowering, "you are sorely mistaken. I can, in fact, run my father's kingdom on my own. We're just a few men short, is all, and their presence will give everyone the comfort they need right now."

"Of course," Leon's smile merely widened. It bordered teasing. "It is them they're sending, then?"

"Yes," Arthur sighed. "At least Gaius will be helpful. I can't say the same about Merlin. He is such a clot."

"This is the seventh time Gaius and Merlin will be joining us?"

"What--Yes, so? What are you suggesting? I didn't request them, specifically."

Leon shrugged and bowed. "I will be on my way, sire."

Arthur glared. "You best be on your way before I have you scrubbing the stables." Leon merely chuckled before he turned and left Arthur rolling his eyes. Sometimes his knights got away with a bit more of a smart mouth than he'd like. Still, he owed his life to them; they weren't only his knights but his friends, his brothers-in-arms, and he would always stand on equal ground with them, even if his father saw the equality as foolish.

Uther saw a great many things as foolish and Arthur wondered if that closed-mindedness finally caught up to him.


End file.
